I almost always drive at 3 and 9, but there comes a time when stuck in traffic or mindlessly trudging down an endless strip of desert highway where I like to resort to the lazy man steering position. Elbow on the door sill, fingers at 9.
Cars with a thin sill (or high beltline) make this almost impossible with the window up, but others make it really easy. You could serve drinks on most Volvos door sills, they're so flat and wide. The last two generations of VW Jetta and Golfs come to mind as well. Add the 2009 Honda Fit to that list. It too is flat and wide, plus the car's telescoping steering wheel allows me to keep a reasonably firm grip on the wheel with thumb and fingers. Makes being lazy easy.
James Riswick, Automotive Editor @ 8,466 miles
subytrojan says:
10:47 AM, 07/ 1/09
Another factor is how far the door is from the seat. With the previous generation Impreza, resting my arm on the door sill was a cinch. With the current one, the sill is too far away.
When I'm trudging along the Santa Monica Freeway, I often like to rest my left elbow on the sill and grab the grab/oh sh__! handle with my left hand.
adavis2493 says:
11:16 AM, 07/ 1/09
When I was younger, I remember my dad would steer on by setting the steering wheel straight, and occasionally jerking it when make a turn. Most of the time he did not have his hands on the wheel. I didn't notice it much when he had a comfortable riding car, but when he got that 5-Series, it drove me crazy.
Just throwing that out there....
ahightower says:
11:42 AM, 07/ 1/09
Not bad. If only the Fit had someplace to put those long legs.
huisj says:
12:24 PM, 07/ 1/09
That picture is hilarious to me because it practically could be me when I'm driving my Fit. I almost always sit like that in it.
crystalfivemt says:
01:50 PM, 07/ 1/09
Nice entry, because it's informative.
supergoji says:
06:15 AM, 07/ 2/09
The 90's 300Zx also has a great lazy man steering position.
just rest your left hand on your left thigh and slightly steer with your fingers. or do it with your right arm.
my friend also custom did his stock seats so they feel like lazy boy's with bolsters that grab you. best seats ever.
supergoji says:
06:16 AM, 07/ 2/09
here's the link
http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a56/supergoji/DSC01185.jpg
redwoodaggie says:
07:51 AM, 07/ 2/09
I ironically don't fit in the Fit (6'7"), but my G8 GT allows me to do the same thing. I never had a car that allowed me to do that before and now I miss it if I'm driving another car.
mopho says:
08:15 AM, 07/ 2/09
this is just the kind of thing that shows up in long-term blogs but not featured front-page reviews, and exactly why i read this blog. :)